


We'll Work it Out Together

by inheritanceofgeek



Category: Fruits Basket, Fruits Basket - Takaya Natsuki (Manga)
Genre: Asexual Character, Asexual Kyo, Asexuality Spectrum, Best Friends, Demisexual Kyo, F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Gay Yusuke, Implied Sexual Content, Kyo plays basketball, Light Angst, Manga Spoilers, Minor Kazuma/Kunimitsu, Minor Machi/Yuki, No beta we die like mne, Sex Education
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-15
Updated: 2020-04-15
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:14:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23670631
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inheritanceofgeek/pseuds/inheritanceofgeek
Summary: Hiroshi and Yusuke have been friends with Kyo ever since he first arrived in their classroom and got mobbed by cats. Their favourite hobby is teasing Kyo about anything and everything, but one day a spot of teasing opens up a whole new side to him; and it's their duty as Best Friends to help see their friend through this stage in his life.After all, puberty hits us all in very different ways.ORIn which Hiroshi and Yusuke help Kyo figure out he's asexual, and are the biggest Kyoru shippers on the block (besides Shishou-san).
Relationships: Honda Tohru/Sohma Kyou
Comments: 32
Kudos: 71





	1. Realisation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I cannot tell you just how excited I was when I found out that Kyo's friends finally had NAMES in the Anime!!! I've always loved Hiroshi and Yusuke, and I'm so happy to finally be able to put names to their wonderful faces <3 
> 
> This fic mostly plays off of that concept, these boys are clearly Kyo's best friends, since whenever he's not with Tohru he's with them. So I wanted to explore that and the different ways they support their friend. ESPECIALLY during the whole drama of him and Tohru not getting together! So yes. That's what it's about. 
> 
> Also I am Asexual so that's sort of the perspective this fic is written from? Except Kyo has WAAAAY less performative heterosexuality than I displayed.

"You'd think by now he'd have realised what's about to happen." Hiroshi commented conversationally as their friend was once again taken to the side by a nervous looking third year girl. It had been happening a lot lately, people determined to not let the year end without expressing their true feelings. It really was something to be admired. 

Yusuke leant back against the wall as he watched the scene before them with an amused grin "You forget, this is Kyo we're talking about. He's the most oblivious being on earth!" 

Hiroshi nodded in solum agreement. The girl took him up to the designated confession tree, her hands wringing nervously. Her lips moved in a familiar fashion, and then with equal familiarity Kyo rolled his neck and let out a groan. He said something no doubt highly insensitive and the girl started to cry. Kyo hesitated, looking back and forth between his exit route and the girl before ruffling the back of his hair. He then shoved his hands in his pockets and refused to meet her gaze as he said something softer before walking away. The girl continued to cry under the tree. A type One then. Those were the  _ least _ amusing to watch, it was just  _ painful _ . Two years of pining to end in utter rejection. Ooof. 

Kyo's confessions were very predictable, it was like watching someone trying to get all the endings in an Otome Game. It went like this: The person would confess. Kyo would get frustrated and say something insensitive. The person would then: i) Burst into tears and cry whilst Kyo looked on awkwardly ii) Become enraged by his cold response and yell at him before storming away with optional slapping iii) Throw themselves at him in a final hopeless attempt, only to end up flat on their back. 

The only exception to this rule had been when Hoshijima-senpai. He'd confessed his love after Basketball Club, and Kyo had enough sense to bite his tongue and offer a 'thank you but I'm not interested'. He'd gently pat him on the shoulder before walking away with his tail between his legs. It had been a whole other level of awkward. The poor guy had resembled an emotionally compromised beetroot. A particularly attractive beetroot, but a beetroot nonetheless. Yusuke had been personally grateful for Kyo's sensitivity, and quietly jelous that the hottest openly queer boy in school had confessed to Kyo and not to  _ him _ ! 

But whatever. He couldn't blame the guy. If you were gonna throw it all on the line for someone, the hot, six foot martial arts expert with beautiful eyes and even more beautiful smile was a pretty good choice. Yusuke might have done it himself, if he didn't know Kyo well enough to realise just how big of an ignorant doofus he really was. Dating him would require the patience of a saint. Unless you were an  _ equally _ ignorant doofus with beautiful eyes and even more beautiful smile. 

_ God _ when would those two get their shit together and just confess already?! If it didn't happen by the start of the next semester, Yusuke would be out of the betting pool! 

Kyo trudged back over to them, kicking at the ground. "You guys getting the train home then?" he grunted, picking his gym kit back up off the ground where he'd left it for them to guard. 

"You really should be kinder to them you know." commented Hiroshi for the hundredth time. "It takes a lot of courage to speak up like that. You should show them some respect." 

Kyo let out a deep groan and ruffled his hair again "It's not my fault they're doing all of this! I hardly even know half of them. I'd never seen that girl before in my  _ life _ ! How can she expect to love me if we've never even had a conversation? That's not love, that's just… fancy. Or whatever." 

"Well, that's only because if they spoke to you they'd realise what a dunce you are and fall out of love immediately." teased Yusuke, always looking for an opportunity to get a rise out of his favourite tsundere. The fact that Kyo actually  _ agreed _ with him said it all really. Well, not about the dunce part, but the falling out of love bit. He'd been hit on the head for the dunce part. 

"She was really hot though." Reasoned Hiroshi as they walked out of the school "Truly spectacular tits. She has to be an E-Cup at  _ least _ . How can she even walk with those? Should have said yes just to see what would happen, know what I mean?" 

Kyo halted in his tracks and gaped at Hiroshi with disgust. "What the fuck are you on about you  _ pervert _ ! You can't just… you can't just say things like that! That's so-- that's-- no!" 

Hiroshi sighed, Kyo was always behaving like this. For someone who swore so much, he had really strict ideals about what was and wasn't appropriate conversation. He threw an arm around his shoulders in an attempt to placate him. "Don't get in such a twist, Kyon-kyon. Nobody else is around to hear us, it's just us boys. It is perfectly acceptable for three teenage boys to make sexual comments about girls behind their backs so long as we also recognise their bodily autonomy and right to privacy and all that feminist stuff. And  _ anyway _ ," he added a bit defensively "you were alright with Yusuke talking about how Hoshijima-senpai's arse looked when he was running. Why's this any different?"

"Because  _ that's _ not a-- wait!" Kyo turned back around to face Yusuke "That was… that was a pervert thing? That-- oh  _ god _ . I thought you just meant he had good form-- you were-- you can't do that! That's just wrong! You--  _ no _ ! God you're as bad as that damn dog. I can't even--" 

He shoved them away and started marching off out the gate in fragrant disgust. 

"I'd call him out on his homophobia if he weren't so clearly being equal in his disgust." mused Yusuke. 

"Our Kyon-kyon is many things, but at least he's not a homophobe. Though when do you think he'll twig that when Kinimutsu-san introduced himself to us as Kazuma-sensei's 'partner' he meant of the romantic kind? And not just someone who helps around the Dojo?" Pondered Hiroshi as they jogged to catch up with the dolt in question. 

"Give it another ten years. He'll figure it out eventually." 

They finally caught up with Kyo and launched themselves into his back in an affectionate tussle. Kyo easily pushed them off and after a second they were all laughing again. He made a show of helping them to their feet before dropping them back down on the ground. "Stay there in the gutter where you belong." 

The boys rolled their eyes again and clambered to their feet. "You need to stop acting so weird about sex Kyo. Didn't you listen to Mayu? 'These feelings you are having are valid and real, there is no shame in them.'" Yusuke recited, in an especially good impression of their most beloved sensei, even if he did say so himself. 

Kyo's face went bright red at the mention of their incredibly awkward sex education session. Which was in part because of how many girls were making a very obvious attempt to  _ not _ look at their precious prince throughout. Hiroshi had risked a glance around the room though, and spotted a bright pink Honda-kun throwing nervous looks at Kyo. It was almost as though she was trying to decyfer for herself if he gave her 'amorous feelings'. At least  _ one _ of them had an inkling of what was up. Not that Honda-kun would ever  _ dare _ make any sort of move.

Kyo gave out a cough and rubbed the back of his neck "Yeah but, that stuff was just… about people looking cute right? And you know, feelings in your chest and… stuff. You don't actually… I mean, only perverts look at people and think about…  _ that _ … stuff. Right?" he glanced back up at his friends with an almost panicked expression. 

The boys shared a surprised look and slowly turned back to look at him. "No Kyo. The majority of the population feel sexual attraction towards other people." their friend flinched at the word 'sexual' in a way that would normally have made Hiroshi laugh but right now just filled him with pity for their best friend's ignorance. 

Yusuke tried to expand upon the point, hesitant to push much further but finding the whole situation innately fascinating. "You've never looked at a person and suddenly felt your mouth turn dry? Started sweating a little? Found yourself unable to look away from whatever it is that's got you hot and bothered? Felt a little twitch down below?" 

Kyo gave a slightly nervous shake of his head, a fear now present in his face that hadn't been there before. Yusuke and Hiroshi shared another look before turning back to their friend with a gentle smile. Hiroshi wrapped an arm around his shoulders once more. 

"Oh sweet, darling Kyon-kyon, have I got some great news for you about asexuality!" 

It was a longer talk than perhaps it should have been. They'd sat on the grass by the school gate for a while as Kyo asked questions that had clearly been weighing on his mind for a while. The boys listened to each one of them, providing advice where needed and recommendations for websites that could answer the questions they couldn't. He seemed to be constantly dancing around something though… the same  _ something _ that he'd edged around during their career counselling sessions. When they finally got up and went home, Kyo seemed more relaxed and at peace than he'd been before this all started. But for some reason that just worried them all the more. 

Not that there was much either of them could do about that. Kyo was a mystery to almost everyone in the school, and the cat thing was just the edge of it. One day when he was ready though, he'd tell them the truth. Of that they were certain. 

They were friends after all, and if Kyo was willing to listen to Hiroshi confess his worry over his sister's pregnancy; and Yusuke concerns about coming out to his very traditional parents… well. They could listen to whatever his problems were. It felt good that he'd been able to open up about this small thing, and maybe that would be enough. For now at least. 

"Do you think he understands just how hot he is now?" Asked Yusuke once they'd parted ways at the station. 

"That, my dear Yu-kun, is a conversation for another day." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You get a special No Prize if you can name the Anime/Manga where I stole the name "Hoshijima" from. CLUE: He appears in another show that Caitlin Glass directs the ADR for. I think giving you anymore clues would just be /handing/ it to you.


	2. Discovery

The discussion of Kyo's sexuality had never been bought up again after that day on the grass. They'd kept their locker room talk to the side, aware now of how uncomfortable it made Kyo feel. Which was kind of awkward when Yusuke was starting to get serious with his boyfriend and felt the need to spread the details of their relationship  _ everywhere _ . 

Their third year came around, and that tense uncertainty in Kyo's demeanor seemed to grow and lessen at the same time? It was like he'd finally accepted some tragic fate he refused to speak of. His growing gentle hopelessness was a weird contrast to his cousin's increasing confidence. 

Things only got worse when Tohru-kun had ended up in hospital following an accident on the cliff tops. For some reason her friends seemed to blame Kyo for everything that had happened, and Yuki-kun was somehow acting even more disdainful towards his cousin than normal! Kyo was clearly blaming himself for what happened as well, which didn't really surprise anyone who truly knew him. 

Then the miraculous happened, and Hiroshi won 8000¥ in the betting pool! Kyo and Tohru had finally confessed their feelings to one another and over night had become a hopelessly lovey dovey couple who openly showed their affection whenever given the chance. There was so much hand holding and hugging between them you'd think they'd been touch starved their whole lives. 

They'd all had so much fun teasing Kyo about it all! They'd been waiting for this moment ever since that first day of classes, when Tohru had run out the classroom to follow him (and his kitty cat fanclub) to the roof of the school building. Their long held mutual pining had come with the benefit that they jumped straight from shy newbies to permanently established relationship in the blink of an eye. It meant they had the confidence and independence to spend time apart from one another, and understand the value found in that. They hadn't suddenly lost all contact with their friend, they'd just gained a happier one! 

It was also good to see that, despite her very blatant sexual attraction, Tohru wasn't pushing Kyo at all and respected his boundaries. Not that Hiroshi ever expected anything less from her. Or for Kyo to even notice what she was thinking. It wasn't like Yuki-kun and Kuragi-san; who were always exchanging distinctly R-rated looks. 

Ever so slowly though, something seemed to change within Kyo though. Usually when they teased him about his relationship he'd shove them off of him and be unable to control his blatant happiness. However, something changes and he started to turn bright red and mumbled incoherently about it not being any of their business. When he got caught looking at Tohru-kun in class or whatever, he'd started to frantically pretend like nothing had ever happened. One day in the literal locker room whilst they got changed after practice, he turned to them and let out a loud "So what does sexual attraction feel like?!" 

The boys just blinked at him in surprise. His face was flushed brighter than his hair. Yusuke slowly lowered down the shirt he'd been about to put on and turned to look at Hiroshi, who was busy pulling on his trousers. 

"Why do you ask?" ventured Hiroshi finally. Kyo gave a mumbled 'never mind' and started to pull off his own sweat soaked shirt and make his way to the shower before stopping and staring up at the ceiling. He took a deep breath and turned around to face them. 

"I think -- I think I'm starting to-- to have you know… feelings. For Tohru."

"Feelings?" 

"Yeah. You know…  _ feelings _ ." Kyo reiterated, pursing his lips and looking just about ready to explode. 

Hiroshi blinked for a second trying to figure out what his friend was talking about. Of course he had feelings for Tohru-kun! The pair were hopelessly in love any fool could see that. Then suddenly he found himself remembering a conversation on a patch of grass… 

"Oh! God! You mean  _ those _ kind of Feelings! Okay, woah. That's--" began Hiroshi, sitting back on the bench with no idea what to say. What could you say? For most people this was just a gradual thing that developed as you grew up. For Kyo, this seemed to be a complete and utter turn around hitherto unknown. 

"Yeah. Exactly." muttered Kyo, gripping tighter to the hand towel draped over his shoulder. "So… so what do I do about… that. It's… it's sort of distracting. Sometimes. It feels sort of--" Kyo abruptly shut his mouth as though in fear of exactly what was about to come out of it.

"Why don't we finish getting changed and talk about that over some drinks." suggested Yusuke delicately. In all honesty, he was finding it a little difficult to be having this conversation when Kyo was in such a state of undress. He'd seen Kyo with nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist before. But Kyo talking about sex whilst only wearing a towel was a different kettle of fish all together. Yusuke was obsessed with his boyfriend, but he was only human; after all. 

"Yeah. Yeah that's-- yeah." Kyo nodded and marched into the shower cubicle. The boys shared another look between them and let out a low whistle in unison. This was going to be a fun conversation. 

They grabbed some cans from the vending machine and slumped back down onto the grass outside the school. They watched Kyo down the rest of his water bottle and then stared up at the sky as he considered his words. 

"It's like… before when she did something cute I felt my heart skip a beat and butterflies dance in my stomach and all I wanted to do was hold her close and kiss her and tell her how much I love her. But now-- I mean I still feel all of that! But-- it's like there are more things that make me feel like that? And the feelings are-- different. There's-- you know. Bellow. Stuff."

"'Bellow stuff.'" quoted Yusuke, trying his hardest to not laugh at Kyo's awkward almost childish way of describing things. Well, he  _ was _ the youngest in their year; after all. It was sort of to be expected. 

"So you've felt 'the twitch' at last?" ventured Hiroshi. Kyo nodded in response, embarrassed shame riding over his face.

"I thought when you said I was Asexual that I wouldn't ever feel that sort of thing. But obviously you were wrong about that I--" he began to pick at the grass as he formulated his thoughts. His friends kept their silence, waiting for him to continue at his own pace. "I thought that name really suited me. It felt right. But maybe it was just a lie? Maybe… recently something-- something changed in my life. I had to say goodbye to someone." His hand absentmindedly reached for his wrist where his beads used to be. They'd asked about them before, and he'd just muttered something about family tradition. Their disappearance  _ had _ to mean something, but he refused to talk about what that was and the boys knew better than to push the subject.

There were also fewer cats hanging around school lately. But that was correlation, not causation. 

"Maybe the thing I said goodbye to.. maybe  _ that _ was the thing making me asexual? And this is who the real me is? But… when I said goodbye to them, everything changed all at once! It was like a sudden rush of emotions and feelings that came over me. This was slower and… I just don't understand what it means? Maybe I've  _ not _ been able to say goodbye entirely. What if-- what if that  _ thing _ comes back?" He glanced back up at his friends, a desperation in his amber eyes. They felt a great affection swell within their bodies. They loved that boy. Really and truly loved him like a brother. It hurt them deeply to see him like this. The answer to his woes was an easy one though. 

"Look, there's no need to worry either way. Sexuality is fluid, and what label suits you one day might not be the same the next! And that's okay. It doesn't invalidate any of your previous experiences. But to  _ me _ , this sounds like textbook demisexuality. Which is a branch of asexuality! Remember we said it was a spectrum?" Promoted Yusuke, Kyo nodded in slow response "It means that you only develop sexual attraction to someone after you've really gotten to know them well." 

"And there's nobody else you know better than Tohru-kun." added Hiroshi, with a fond smile on his face "You two are undoubtedly End Game. We'll have a ten year reunion and you'll show up celebrating your eighth wedding anniversary and showing off pictures of your three beautiful kids."

"Why  _ eight _ years? I give it one year tops before we're getting invites in the mail." Smirked Yusuke, pleased to note that Kyo's face was returning to its usual shade of pink and not the pale mess it had been a moment before. 

Hiroshi let out a bark of laughter, eager to continue the game. "Yes, but our baby boy is only seventeen. He needs to wait another three years before they let him get married. Assuming Tohru-kun's defence force grants him permission." 

"Okay you can stop now." Kyo glared, his embarrassment levels rising to dangerous levels. His friends ignored him still. 

"Oh come on Hiro-kun! Like his shishou isn't  _ already _ planning the wedding."

"Do you think they'll go Shinto or Christian?"

"Well Kyon-kyon would look absolutely stunning in a white--" 

"--I said  _ shut up _ !" Barked Kyo, giving Yusuke a shove. "That's not what I came to talk about." 

"No, you want to talk about how you'll come about those three beautiful children." winked Hiroshi, earning himself a matching elbow to the ribs. 

"I still want to wait for a bit. I'm not ready for  _ that _ yet. I just want to know what I do in the meantime? It's… it's getting awkward. She was polishing the floor the other day, and--" 

"Go ooooon!" sang Hiroshi, resting his hands on his chin. 

"Spare us no details Kyon-kyon." Added Yusuke, mirroring his friend. Kyo threw his head back in exasperation. He let out a deep breath as he resigned himself to the truth. 

"I was just getting some milk out the fridge, and she was polishing the floor. And I took a swig and looked over and-- and well she's always liked wearing short skirts. So-- so… I saw a glimpse of… her…  _ you know _ ." 

Yusuke let out a dramatic gasp "How scandalous of you Kyon-kyon! And  _ then _ what happened?" 

Kyo leant forward and buried his head in his hands, as if admitting to the greatest shame on earth. "And then I got so distracted looking at her I didn't realise I was still holding the carton at an angle. And spilt milk all over myself." 

The boys burst into laughter, Kyo's insistence that they shut up making it all the funnier. The unintentional innuendo about 'spilling his milk' wasn't lost on either of them. Though it certainly was on Kyo. 

"You guys don't understand!" He whined pathetically and looked at them pleadingly. It was quite out of character, but then again they'd never had these kind of conversations before. Kyo tried desperately to explain himself further. "She jumped up and started to try and wipe it off! Her hands were all over me and my milk was everywhere! She had to bend down again to wipe it off the floor and-- come on stop laughing already!" The boys were literally rolling about on the floor now. Kyo trying his all to get them to take him seriously with absolutely no success. There was a reluctant twinge of amusement in his voice though. "I had to go have a cold shower right away before she noticed anything was up." More laughter erupted from the floor, great tears streaming down their faces. "God why am I even friends with you idiots! I'm just-- how do you even  _ deal _ with this stuff?! This is a  _ regular thing _ for you guys? With just… anyone you come across?!" 

It took a good minute but Hiroshi eventually calmed down enough to answer. Yusuke was having less success in that department and had his chuckles behind his hand for the rest of the conversation. Hiroshi took a deep, steadying breath and began explaining the ways of teenage sex drives. 

"This sort of thing isn't exactly a _daily_ occurance. Well, okay the concept of being sexually attracted to people and wanting to have sex with them is, I suppose. But getting an erection because you see a girl's underwear _isn't_." The word 'erection' made Kyo turn bright red and Hiroshi had to make a herculean effort to suppress another bout of laughter. "These things are usually dependent on what mood you're in and what the situation is. With me, sometimes I'm just super horny and anything will set me off. Or it'll be a specific person in a specific situation that I just _happen_ to find arousing." 

"Like that time in second year when you saw Iwata coming out of the swimming pool in her bikini." Said Yusuke, his words muffled through his hand. Hiroshi reached across to slap his friend, choosing to ignore Kyo's scandalous look. 

"If you're going to talk about that, then you can talk about the time you walked into a lamppost because you saw Kusakabe pouring water over himself to cool down during tennis practice.  _ I _ was able to conceal my shame with a school bag. Remind me, just how long did you have that bruise for? Was it one week or two?"

"I hid it under mum's make-up. Nobody noticed." Mumbled Yusuke. 

"Bull shit. The only person who  _ didn't _ notice was Kyon-kyon here." 

Kyo opened his mouth to defend himself and then closed it again because he couldn't deny the truth. He gave a little shrug in defeat, and let himself laugh at the situation. He was clearly feeling quite awkward about the conversation still, but he'd relaxed a bit more into it. He wasn't the same nervous, on edge boy he'd been at the start of the year. 

"So I just have to deal with the fact that I can't ever look at Tohru when she's doing the cleaning ever again?" asked Kyo in mild defeat. "I don't want to have any more of these… incidents." 

"Well, maybe for  _ now  _ you can do your best to look away. But they'll come a time when you won't want to, and she won't want you to, either." winked Hiroshi, enjoying Kyo's face journey at the very idea that Tohru-kun would  _ want _ him to find her sexy. Yusuke finally managed to control his laughter, and reached out to pat him gently on the shoulder. 

"Sweet innocent little Kyon-kyon. I have  _ seen _ the way Tohru-kun looks at you when you're unbuttoning your shirt at the end of the day. Take it from one who knows: your girl is for one-hundred-percent sure returning your  _ feelings _ ." He waggled his fingers to emphasise the word, letting his grin spread across his face once more. 

Kyo's eyes widened at the concept. "Tohru has…  _ feelings _ for me?" 

"Ah-ha!" 

"Oh  _ definitely _ ." 

"Oh." Kyo stared at the ground for a minute, and you could see the clogs whirling in his brain as he no doubt began to play back various scenarios in his head. "Fuck." he whispered at last. 

"Well  _ exactly _ ." grinned Hiroshi happily receiving his punishment. It was so good to see Kyo this relaxed and at home again. So much has changed within the three years they'd spent together. Neither of them could imagine what school would have been like without him! There'd certainly be fewer laughs for one, and also fewer classes interrupted by the sudden arrival of cats. 

For real, what had been with those cats? And why had they mysteriously disappeared all of a sudden? At least the rat problem was over too. That had just been gross. Cats were cute and fluffy, but who wanted wild rats running about? And why had the prince been so against setting down traps? It wasn't like he was vegetarian or anything. Maybe he just  _ liked _ rats? 

There were just some mysteries in life that could never be solved. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is sort of me taking a stab in the dark about what discovering you're Demisexual would feel like. It was a lot of fun to write! Who knows? Maybe one day I'll find a Tohru and it'll happen?


	3. Exploration

There had been a few more tales of Kyo's delicate and tentative adventures into sexual attraction. Nothing particularly scandalous or exciting, but it was a lot of fun watching him make those early steps. Not that they had much experience on the topic either. Hiroshi in particular was mostly all talk and awkward lies. But Kyo seemed to take every make out session as a religious experience. 

Could there ever be a more adorable couple? When you saw them walking hand in hand it was hard to imagine them doing  _ anything _ sexual. They gave off an air of pure love-struck innocence. Though it was still easy to see the attraction that was bubbling underneath. 

There'd been a couple of times where Tohru's kiss goodbye before practice had gone on for a fraction more than was considered appropriate for public decency. They'd paid the price by being subject to the teams' over enthusiastic whoops and hollers. Kyo had been victim to their constant teasing after that, as everyone was determined to congratulate their boy on his journey into adulthood. It was really weird, when you thought about it; 

Whilst Kyo's own dedicated following seemed a bit peeved by events, there was no denying the personal investment the whole of their year had put into Kyo and Tohru. They were all  _ genuinely _ proud of him for coming this far in such a short time! He’d had to come over a lot of unspoken emotional trauma as well as his own god given ignorance to get to where he was today. A boy who’d started out so terrified of girls that he’d leapt out of a building was now able to casually admit his love to his school friends like it was no big deal! And Tohru, always so shy with her true emotions and unable to take a compliment, was finally standing next to someone who thought they hung the stars. Their general inability to work out their own feelings had frustrated everyone no end, so seeing them finally together was a relief to everyone! To the point where they were treated like a school wide success story.

It was why they got so excited with each update and had completely freaked out when Kyo had proudly announced that Tohru had accepted his request to move away with him following graduation! He'd come to them to ask for advice about how to ask her, and they'd spent a good three hours devising various strategies involving roses and candle light-- only for Kyo to ignore them and ask her over her mother's grave. Which… was a choice. But it was a choice that worked apparently so who cared?! Their little boy was growing up and making plans for his future and being  _ happy _ ! 

Then on their penultimate day of High School, Kyo and Tohru came into class with a different air about them. On the surface it seemed like nothing had changed between them, but there was still an underlying  _ something _ that couldn't be ignored. Uotani and Hanajima had  _ certainly _ noticed and had been just about to drag Kyo off for an interrogation before Hiroshi and Yusuke dived in to nab him for their  _ own _ purposes. 

They frog marched him to their usual spot and forced him to sit down. They then fell to their knees in front of him with cheshire cat grins. "Spill! We want to know all the details!" 

"Well, not all of them." 

"No,  _ all _ of them!" 

"I have no idea what you guys are talking about." Kyo refused to meet their eyes but when they shuffled closer to him he shot them back a giant grin. It wasn't the same love sick, sappy, tear filled one that had happened when he told them of Tohru moving in with him; it was something new and different. He looked excited and  _ bursting _ to let them know what had happened. "Okay, so maybe something  _ did _ happen last night." 

The boys squealed excitedly and leant forward, encouraging him to talk. They'd had these discussions before, but for some reason hearing it all from Kyo felt different somehow? There was also the general aura about him? The majority of people reported that, as much fun as they'd had, their first time wasn't particularly life changing or eye opening. But most people weren't the previously touch starved Kyo and Tohru. 

"Who came onto who?" asked Yusuke 

"Was it planned out, or did it just  _ happen _ ?" 

"More importantly _ where _ did it happen?" 

"Was it good? Did you have fun?" 

"Did you make sure to use protection?" 

"Did she still use keigo the whole--?" 

"--Okay okay! Shut up already will you? You're like a couple of teenage girls asking about a crush!" Kyo berated, leaning away from them. His grin seemed permanently etched to his face. 

"That is almost exactly what we are." counted Hiroshi. 

"De-tails. De-tails." Yusuke clapped. Kyo's smile grew a little more bashful. But it only took a couple of seconds of gentle prodding before he began recounting the events of the night before. 

"Okay, so, I didn't think that would ever happen. I thought that sex was just something I'd never have a chance to experience, let alone sex with Tohru! I mean… it's just. Wow." Kyo took a breath of laughter and the boys couldn't help but coo over his astonished face. Luckily Kyo didn't seem to mind this time and continued on with his story. 

"We'd talked about it, of course. I mean-- we're planning on moving in together so it's not like that sort of stuff was never going to happen! But I thought we might wait a little longer, you know? She told me she'd gone to see the family doctor about… stuff. But that was just precautionary, you know? It's probably important to get those kinds of things out of the way sooner rather than later. But then," he took a deep sigh and looked up at the sky with a slight ounce of dread "I'm never going to hear the end of this from you two, but well… it was her who asked. Shigure was out, and Yuki had gone off to see his girlfriend  _ again _ ; so it was just the two of us. I was going to suggest we make dinner together or something and then she was kissing me and it was like she never wanted to stop? And I didn't want it to stop  _ either _ . And she pulled away and asked if we could go to her room and… make love. And she was so earnest, and she felt so perfect in my hands and the sun was starting to set and created like, this golden halo around her head? And in that moment I just knew that the time was right, you know? I didn't see why we  _ should _ wait any longer? So, we went up to her room and yeah… we did it. We made love." He blushed again, looking up at them with an almost boyish expression. "It was really good. Like,  _ really _ good. I didn't realise sex could be like that…" 

"Like what?" asked Hiroshi, barely able to restrain his joy at his friend's happiness. 

"So romantic! I mean, when they call it 'making love' they really mean that huh? I thought after everything you guys said and all the ummm--  _ not so _ romantic feelings I was having-- that it would just be all about that, you know? But-- oh god it was just-- I've never felt that close to anyone before. And for it to be  _ Tohru _ ! I just, she wrapped her arms around me and it felt like that was all that existed in the world, you know? I didn't--" there seemed to be a lump in his throat as he recounted the tale. They'd be lying if they said they didn't feel it too. "I didn't think I'd ever be allowed to have that moment. After everything I was born into. After all the things I've done, I just-- I didn't think I'd ever deserve that kind of happiness. It was pure bliss. That's the only word for it: bliss." He looked up at them with watery eyes and all they could do was throw themselves at their best friend in a big tight hug. 

"I'm so so so happy for you!" sobbed Hiroshi 

"It's all I have ever wanted for you, Kyo!" 

Kyo laughed and struggled to push them up from off of him. "Okay guys, okay can you just get off me now! I can't breathe you idiots!" 

Yusuke gave him a big kiss on the cheek before clambering off of him. Kyo wiped it away and gave him an irritated look full of affection. 

"You better not be cheating on her  _ already _ ." Came a stern voice and the boys all turned around to see a familiar form looming over them. "I heard what happened, Carrots." 

"Hey, come on you two." began Yusuke climbing to his feet and raising his hands in the air in a placating manner "This is just all between two consenting adults who-- oh fuck that hurts." he yelped, clutching at his head as a sudden pain rushed through it. He looked up and saw the dead eyed gaze of Hanajima and immediately shut up. 

Uotani stomped forward and dragged Kyo to his feet as she'd done a million times before. Kyo looked around helplessly, uncertain what to do anymore. It was one thing to get into fights with her when it was about random stuff like card games or where to eat for lunch; it was nearly impossible to fight back when Tohru's wellbeing was on the line. 

Kyo squared his jaw a bit more and Hiroshi could only admire his courage as he desperately tried to aid their fallen ally. "What happens between us is our business and our business alone. Not yours. Tohru isn't a child anymore. She's eighteen, and she's graduating in a few days." He finally plucked up the courage to push Uotani away from him. "She's not your little girl anymore. I promised you and Kyoko-san that I'd take care of her, and I intend to do that in any way I can. Even if it's in ways you don't personally approve of." he almost spat, the familiar fire returning to his voice. 

"Is that so?" Asked Uotani, taking a step forward and gripping a hold of his shirt. Kyo returned the gesture, his height giving him an advantage in any fight that might come. It was a very public point of annoyance on Uotani's front that despite her own last minute growth spurt, he had  _ still _ managed to out grow her! 

"If you can't handle the truth, then that's your problem, Yankii." There was a tense pause as they glared at one another and then tears began to fall from her eyes. 

"Just promise to take good care of her." she sobbed as she threw herself at him in a giant hug. Kyo looked incredibly confused and flinched as if waiting for something awful to happen! But when it didn't he awkwardly patted her on her back. 

"To think. Our little Tohru has become a woman." Hanajima said at last with the somber tones of a mother on her daughter's wedding day. 

"Kyo-kun!" came a familiar cry "Kyo-kun is everything alright? I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to tell them but it just came out I'm so--" she stopped in her tracks as she looked upon the scene before her. Kyo gave her a rather helpless look, before Tohru started to cry as well and joined in on the hug swiftly followed by Hanajima. Kyo looked over to his friends with an uncertain plea. The boys just gave him a shrug and waved goodbye as they made their way back to class with a promise that they'd make up excuses for their absence. 

"I didn't think I'd ever be this happy for another individual." mused Yusuke as they climbed the stairs. "I know Kyo doesn't like talking about his past, but the stuff he's hinted at with his Sperm Donor and his Mum's death…" 

"And that whole weird rivalry with Yuki. That 'I'll beat you and become a full fledged member of the Sohma Clan' stuff?" added Hiroshi with a solemn nod. "Whatever was going on behind closed doors, it's good to see him happy and free.  _ God knows _ he deserves it." 

They looked out the window and saw Kyo still being squished in a giant hug. "Our little boy really has become a man." sighed Yusuke wistfully. 

"We never did find out about the cats though." sighed Hiroshi. "What was up with that? They used to follow us home, remember? There used to be this big trail of cats stalking after us as we walked down the street. We had to avoid pet stores. You know what happened the other day? I saw one walk down the road, take one look at him, and jumped up onto a brick wall in order to avoid him. It was so weird!" He cried, waving his hands about in the air. 

"How are you  _ still _ caught up about that?" 

"It's important! It was one of the seven mysteries of the school and now it's just  _ suddenly _ stopped?!" 

"Well maybe there was a magical animal lover curse put over him that got broken with True Love’s First Kiss?" suggested Yusuke dryly. "And maybe the rats have all gone because Yuki was under the  _ same _ curse! But with rats instead!"

"If you're not going to take this seriously, then don't even bother talking to me." huffed, Hiroshi walking into the classroom. Curses that made animals follow you everywhere you go? Who'd ever heard of that! It was as ridiculous as someone turning into a cat if they got hugged by a girl! 

Still, if it was a curse, then it was good to see it broken. If anyone deserved a fairytale ending, it was Kyo and Tohru. 

**Author's Note:**

> Enjoyed this? Let me know via Kudos/Comments or on Tumblr where I'm [Mrsmarymorstan](https://mrsmarymorstan.tumblr.com) =)


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